Adjustable pressure regulator



Oct. 10; 1950 F. SAYERS ADJUSTABLE PRESSURE REGULATOR Filed April 10,1947 FPEDEE/ ATTORNEYS hatented Oct. 10,

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE ADJUSTABLE PRESSURE REGULATOR FrederickSayers, Fort Atkinson, Wis., assignor to' Moe Brothers ManufacturingCompany, Fort Atkinson; Wis., a corporation of Wisconsin I ApplicationApril 10, 1947, Serial No. 740,626

3 Claims. 1

This invention relates to improvements in adjustable pressure regulatorsof the relief valve type. The device as herein disclosed is particu-'larly designed for use in connection with domestic pressure cookers.

It is a primary object of the invention to pro: vide a novel andimproved mechanism whereby a given weight or mass may be applied tovarying cross sections of a tapered vent to regulat the amount ofpressure which must develop in the I5 of substantial mass, the weightlofwhich'is" vent before steam will escape therefrom. More imposed onanyone of the valves selectively en-' specifically stated, it is my purposeto provide a g ed with the valve seat. The body has a construction inwhich a series of valve members bore at l5 fitting telescopically aboutthe head of difierent diameters are telescopically advanced ll of thevalve seat fitting 6. At its lowerend, and retracted with respect toeach other for suc- 15 there is an undercut groove ii in which a concessively engaging the tapered wall of a steam tractile spring 13 is(1151008661 retain the y vent at differently diametered portionsthereof. 15 pos y 0n the Valve Seat Stem: e ad An important feature ofthe invention is the II is beveled at its upper and lower ends to meansby which the telescopically associated facilitate the expansion of thecontractile spring valve members may be sequentially projected by I8when the body 55 is manipulated to and from the rotation of one portionofthe body of the p si ion p n he s m. H w v r, w he body apparatus withrespect to another portion thereis in place on the stem, the beveledshoulder 'at' of. A very important advantage of the constructhe lowerend of the stem head i i oifers sufficient tion as herein disclosed liesin the fact that the resistance to the contractile sp 13 50 thatadjustment can be made without removing the the pressure cooker covercan be handled free y body from the vent. y without danger of the body[5 being accidentally A further object of the invention is to protect Tdisplaced from it. A positive liftingaction by the user of the devicefrom injury by steam passthe operator is required to separate the parts;ing the valve, such steam being 7 conducted The present device usesthree telescopically rethrough escape ducts downwardly toward the toplated valves. The valve which is largest in-diamof the pressure cooker,where it is harmlessly' eter comprises a sleeve. fiilintegral-with bodyi5 dissipated at a point remote from an operator and projectingdownwardlyinto the borelt, comanipulatingthe regulatingapparatus.,axially therewith. Efrem the space between the Still other objects ofthe invention Willbe more wall of here it and the internally spacedvalve clearly apparent from the following disclosure sleeve 20 aplurality of ducts 2i open outwardly thereof. and downwardly to permitthe escape of steam" In the drawings: which passes the valve. 5 Fig. lis a View in vertical axial section through Telescopically slidablewithin valve sleeve 29 a device embodying this invention as it appearsis anintermediate valve 22 which projects into when applied to the steamventof a pressure W the threaded socket 23 and is provided with acooker. flangeZd which may seat against the bottom of Fig. 2 is a viewin side elevation of a device such socket. Within the intermediate valveisembodying the invention. an inner valve 25 having a stem 2e of reducedFig. 3 andFig. 4 are fragmentary detail views diameter. The intermediatevalve has a bore in section illustrating different valve positions intowhichthe cylindrical valve 25 is closely from that shown in Fig. 1. I Vfitted and has a smaller bore through which the A fragment of apressurecooker coverisjshown stem 26 is slidable. at 5. Into it isscrewed a steam vent fittingt. The valve stem 26 of the smallestvalve'zfi is which has a bore 1 opening upwardly from its screw-threadedor otherwise fixed in theadjust bottom end and communicating lateralboresjjfi" ing'cap 2'! of the body ii The cap arises-arr opening intothe bore T below the cover 5 to internal boss at 28 having screw threadsof high admit steam thereto in the event that some of pitchcomplementary to those of the threaded the material being cooked becomeslodged across socket 23 and body l5. A small bail 2% facilitates themouth of the bore 1. l j the handling of the assembly and the rotationof A flange 9 on the vent: fitting 6 seats ,ag'ainst 56 the cap 21respecting body iii. The cap 'ld'hasa 2 the top of the pressure cookercover 5. Immediately above this flange, the fitting 6 is externallyreduced in diameter at it for the impositive retention of the gauge bodyas will hereinafter be described. The enlarged head ll of fitting 6 isprovided with a conically tapered valve seat [2. r V

Coacting with the valve seat l2 are two or more telescopically relatedvalves carried by a body 3 skirt 36 receivable into an annular recess 3|of the body I5 within flange 32. The top margin of the flange serves asan indicator cooperative with a series of calibrating grooves 33, 34 and35 to show the position of adjustment of the cap respecting the body.

With the cap unscrewed to the position shown in Fig. 2, the lowestgroove 33 registering with the margin of flange 32, the inner valve 25rigidly connected by stem 26 with the cap will be drawn upwardly to itshighest position respecting body l5 carrying with it the intermediatevalve 22 against the pressure of compression spring 36, which isinterposed between the cap 21 and the flange 24 of the intermediatevalve. In this position of the parts, both the intermediate and innervalves being retracted, the outer or sleeve valve 26 will be exposed tocontact the tapered seat [2 at a high level as shown in Fig. 3. Theentire weight of body l5 and cap 27 and associated parts will besustained from the fitting 6 by the valve 20. In this position of theparts, it will be apparent that any steam pressure developed in thecontainer for which the part 5 represents a cover will be applied to therelatively large area represented by the overall diameter of the entireset of valves. Since the load or mass of the body l5 and its associatedparts is a fixed amount, it will be apparent that a relatively smallpressure in the container applied to this relatively large area will besufficient to lift the valve set and body l5, thus permitting excesssteam to escape through the ducts 2!. For pressure cooker purposes, theamount of pressure required to release steam when the valve 26 is in usemay be assumed to be of the order of five pounds.

If the regulator cap 21 is screwed downwardly respecting body [5 untilthe intermediate groove or calibration 34 registers with the rim- 32, asshown in Fig. 1, the inner valve 25 will be lowered just sulficiently topermit the flange 24 of the intermediate valve 22 to seat against thebottom of recess 23 under the compression of spring 36. As clearlyappears from Fig. l, the entire this arrangement of the parts may be socalculated that the steam pressure now exerted upon a smaller area willhave to be of the order of ten pounds before lifting the mass of body [5regulating cap 21 and associated parts to permit the escape of steamthrough ducts 2!.

If the regulating cap 21 be further screwed downwardly respecting body[5 until the top calibration 35 registers with the pointer or margin 32,the innermost valve 25 will no be advanced downwardly out of theintermediate valve 22 to engage the tapered seat l2 at a still lowerlever and smaller diameter as shown in Fig. 4. The other two valves 22and are carried in the clear. With this greatly reduced diameter,

still higher steam pressure in the vessel will be required to displacethe regulator assembly and, in pressure cooker practice, the dimensionsof the parts may be predetermined so that, for example, a pressure offifteen pounds will be developed in the container before the body 15 andassociated regulator parts will be displaced when the valve is in use asshown in Fig. 4.

It will be noted that the constricting spring [6 which holds theregulator body and cap assembly to fittin 6 is normally positioned wellbelow the shoulder of head ll of such fitting so that it does notinterfere with the slight rising of the assembly to permit the escape ofsteam through the ducts 2 I.

Due to the fact that the differentially diametered valve and valve seatelements include telescopically projected. parts, together with meansfor projecting them sequentially, it is possible to adjust the apparatusfor one pressure or another without lifting the apparatus from thesupporting fitting and without releasing the pressure in the controlledcontainer except in accordance with the adjustment of the telescopicallyrelated elements.

I claim:

1. In a device of the character described, the sub-combination whichcomprises a body provided internally with a tubular valve element, asecond valve element telescopically movable within the tubular valveelement, a regulator cap in screwthreaded connection with the body, anda connection from the cap for positively moving the second valve elementin one direction respecting the first valve element, the said positiveconnection comprising a third valve element having a shoulder withrespect to which the second valve element has lost motion, and a springurging the second valve element toward said shoulder, said second valveelement having means limiting movement in response to the spring wherebythe third valve element may continue when the second is stopped by thelimiting means.

2. In a device of the character described, a regulator comprising a bodyhaving a bore adapted to receive a headed fitting provided with atapered valve seat, a valve sleeve fixed to said body and projectinginto said bore for engagement with such a seat, an intermediate valvemember telescopically slidable in said sleeve between advanced andretracted positions, a stop flange engageable with said body to limitthe advance position of said intermediate valve, a spring urging saidintermediate valve toward its said advance position, said intermediatevalve being socketed, and a third valve reciprocable in the socket ofthe intermediate valve and provided with a stem extending through theintermediate valve, said third valve being adapted to be advanced beyondthe intermediate valve in the position in which the intermediate valveis arrested by said stop means, and a regulating cap screwthreaded tosaid body and positively connected to the stem of the third valve andcomprising means 'whereb the third valve may be advanced and retractedand the intermediate valve retracted, whereby the several valves may beselectively engaged with difierentially diametered portions of saidtapered seat.

3. A device of the character described comprising in combination afittin having a, restricted waist portion and enlarged head having atapered shoulder at said waist portion, a conical valve seat in the headand a bore leading through the fitting to said seat, of a body having abore in which the head of said fitting is reciprocable, said body beingprovided below said head with a contractile detent key relatively freelymovable respecting the waist portion of the fitting but requiringexpansion to pass said head, a threaded socket in the upper portion ofsaid body in substantial alignment with said bore last mentioned, aregulating cap screwthreaded to said body within the socket, said body'and cap having complementary skirt portions provided withcalibrationsindicative of the 5 V threaded position of the cap, an outertubular valve member connected with said body and projecting into thebore of said body toward the seat of said fitting, an intermediate valvemember reciprocable telescopically in the first valve member and havinga flange adapted to seat at the bottom of said socket to limit itsmovement in a downward direction, a compression spring acting on theintermediate valve member and biasing it toward the position in whichsaid flange engages the bottom of the socket, an inner valve membertelescopically adjustable in the intermediate valve member and having astem connected with said regulating cap, and a head for which theintermediate valve member is provided with a socket and shoulder, saidcap, in its highest position respecting said body acting through saidstem and shoulder to lift the intermediate valve member into the firstvalve member, leaving the first valve member to engage said seat, and insuccessively lower positions of said cap permitting the intermediatevalve member to move to its limited position subject to the bias of saidspring whereby it engages said seat in a differentially smallerdiametered portion thereof,

and in the lowest position of said cap being adapted to project theinner valve member beyond the intermediate valve member into engagementwith said seat in a differentially smaller diametered portion thereof.

' FREDERICK SAYERS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS

